Golden State: Love and Conflict in Hostile Lands

It is the eve of his inauguration and President-Elect Bill Kartona is looking forward to the next twelve hours. Tomorrow, he will become the youngest person ever to be sworn in as president of the United States. With his wife asleep, Kartona answers a knock at the door, greets his national security adviser with a passionate kiss, leads her into the bathroom across the hall, and closes the door. A historic and potentially scandalous presidency is about to begin. The next day, when Kartona takes the oath of office, other leaders driven by greed and hunger for power pause and take note. China and Russia want control of the world's largest mining resource. France is taking steps to rescue its former colony from being plundered by the nouveaux riches. While Kartona immerses himself in the various crises, his national security advisor tells him she knows the perfect person to help him defuse the tension among the four countries: Goldie Baume, a cowboy from West Texas. With a world war appearing imminent, Kartona has no choice but to follow her lead. But soon, the new president will have more problems to deal with than he ever imagined.

In this political thriller, a president weakened by scandals must rely on a Texas cowboy to restrain the powerful leaders before they destroy each other and the entire planet. As a romance is rekindled between the cowboy and his former French lover, only time will tell if love will triumph over conflict.

About Ambassador Sichan Siv:

Sichan Siv is the international bestselling author of Golden Bones, an American dream story, published by HarperCollins. In 2001 after unanimous confirmation by the Senate, he was appointed by President George W. Bush as an ambassador to the United Nations Economic and Social Council serving until 2006. In June 2005, he addressed the 60th anniversary of the U.N. in San Francisco, following a tradition established by Presidents Truman in 1945, Eisenhower 1955, Johnson 1965, and Clinton 1995. From 1989 to 1993, Ambassador Siv served at The White House as deputy assistant to President George H. W. Bush and at the State Department as deputy assistant secretary of State. In the private sector, he has held positions in social services, educational exchange, financial management, and investment banking. He provides global strategic advice and gives motivational speeches around the United States and the world, including the Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush Presidential Libraries, Columbia University, Harvard, U.S. Air Force Academy, American Library in Paris, and University of Texas.

Ambassador Siv escaped Cambodia’s killing fields in 1976 and arrived in New England with his mother's scarf, an empty rice bag, and two dollars. He picked apples in Connecticut and drove a taxi in New York, before enrolling in Columbia University's Master of International Affairs Program with a full scholarship.

In 1988, he volunteered in the presidential campaign of George H.W. Bush and was appointed to his White House position the following year. He later attended the U.S. Army War College.

Ambassador Siv is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the George H. W. Bush Award for Outstanding Public Service, U.S. Army Commander's Award, and Brazilian Academy of Art, Culture, and History Honors. He is a volunteer in the U.S. Air Force Auxiliary Civil Air Patrol and honorary commander of USAF 433rd Airlift Wing. He was honorary commander of USAF 12th and 902nd Mission Support Groups.